A Brilliant Year
by arbute
Summary: The start of a beautiful, if tumultuous, relationship.  Marauders Era, James and Lily work it out.


Disclaimer: Everything within this story belongs to JK Rowling except for the characters that I had to create to flesh out the plot. They won't be very good, it'll be obvious she didn't write them.

Chapter 1

It was going to be brilliant year. Lily Evans thought this as she beamed at the bathroom mirror. She glowed with happiness all the way to Platform 9 3/4, she shone radiantly as she kissed her mum and dad goodbye until Christmas, and she even managed to summon a heartfelt farewell for her sister Petunia. Yes, it would be a wonderful year. She was, after all, head girl. And more interestingly, Professor McGonagall had owled her with lots of suggestions to help Lily prepare for her oncoming responsibility. The Gryffindor head had seemed particularly pleased to note that both of the head students this year were in her house.

Lily liked Remus Lupin very much and thought it would be a brilliant partnership. Sure, she could do without his stupid friends, who were very popular, attractive, and so very "interesting," and unfortunately they were very aware of all these things. Thinking back on it, Remus seemed to glitter a little less than two of his more conspicuous cohorts, and there was a third too…a mousier boy who after racking her mind she remembered had a name that started with a 'P'. Phillip, perhaps? Whatever, it didn't matter. What did matter is why Remus continued to hang out with Sirius Black and James Potter.

Maybe her gentle influence would draw him away from them a little, she thought as she climbed aboard the train. Yes, she would help Remus understand that those two pranksters were no good to him. She was sure it would be easy to show him all the ways their immature behavior was holding him back. Immature was perhaps an understatement, she smiled wryly remembering some of the better tiffs she'd had and won against the "marauders." And Potter! Ha! He wanted to an auror?! He couldn't even best a muggleborn girl in an impromptu duel.

The more she reflected on it, she decided that Potter was the worst. Always swaggering around, never applying himself, when it was obvious even to her that he could easily be the most brilliant boy in the school if he paid even a quarter of the attention to his studies that he did to quidditch, ogling the more developed females, and menacing the Slytherins. Granted, Sirius Black did that all as well, but he wasn't the leader of the group, he had a sort of feckless and reckless way about him that James did seem to temper. It was obvious that James held the reins in their tidy little operation of practical jokes and bullying.

Well, this year she would be no mere prefect, and she would hand them their popular arses on silver platters, no matter how attractive they might be. It's not as if she wasn't a red blooded female; she noticed and even understood superficially why the other girls of the school clamored for their attention. For Lily, however, model good looks and a smashing physique did not a boyfriend make. There needed to be a personality, honor, and a quiet sense of confidence. Quiet. She snorted out loud. That right there precluded the marauders head duo, and especially Potter. He certainly didn't fit the bill in any way shape or form.

Not even close, she scoffed, sitting back in the plush seats of the heads' compartment on the train. Looking around and noting the time, she decided it would be prudent to put on her robes and prepare for the train ride, though there was still maybe a half hour before the departure. She hoped Remus would arrive soon, as she thought it would be best to discuss an action plan before any of the other goings on. They would be meeting and orienting the prefects, both new and old, and then she and Remus would have to go on patrol and help the younger students prepare for their pending arrival.

Glancing out the door and down the corridors on the still relatively empty train, Lily decided to take the minimal chance of changing in the compartment and set about stripping off her old blue jeans. She was a little sad that she'd have to relegate them to off-hours clothes, as they were her favorite pair and she was just finally getting them to wear just right. Well, just right according to muggle fashion standards, that was.

She really had no love for the shapeless yards of fabric the wizarding world still draped over their witches, and vowed silently that when she left Hogwarts, she would dress in any way she damn well pleased. She stripped off her old cotton tee and tossed it on the seat next to her jeans, while simultaneously bending down to riffle through her tote for her school robes.

She was humming to herself while she looked for her shift; organizing future discussions and not surprisingly had completely and totally zoned out of her environment.

"Evans?! Bloody hell--" The speaker didn't finish his statement, and honestly, Lily couldn't blame him, given the senseless shriek she had made at the sound of his voice. Oh, this was not happening. It couldn't be happening because it was going to be a brilliant year, and brilliant years absolutely did not start with being caught in your knickers by James Potter.

"Potter, would you do me a favor?" Lily said in her most reasonable I'm-not-affected-at-all-and-how-silly-that-you-should-be voice while she half turned to face him. "Would you kindly…?" She had been about to say 'turn around' only to find that he'd already done so. To the casual observer, he seemed to be studying the casement of the compartment door with great enthusiasm. Well, that was surprising. Potter hadn't just stood there gawping at her like some sort of very large, overly tall fish.

Nonetheless, as she hurried to finish dressing, her embarrassment turned to righteous anger. What was he doing in the heads' compartment sneaking up on her? He didn't belong there. "Did you have a message from Remus? I assume since you're here that he's been delayed?" James continued to stare out the compartment door, hands white-knuckled behind his back.

He cautiously turned to look at her, and upon seeing that she was completely dressed, turned to face her full on. His brow furrowed and he looked confused. "Remus? Why should I have a message from Remus?"

"Since this is the heads' compartment, and since Remus is the head boy, _you_ can conceivably have no other purpose here than to be bringing me, _the head girl_, a message." She favored him with her best 'duh' look and waited pointedly for what she was positive would be some stupid rejoinder on his part. But alas, instead of some suitably idiotic comment or excuse, one corner of his mouth quirked up into a suggestive half smirk.

"No one told you, Evans? Remus isn't head boy."

Lily's face fell as she felt an unpleasant knot of doom steal into her stomach. If what she was thinking was true, it was NOT going to be a brilliant year. It was going to be a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad year. Her mind refused to assimilate the information. She raised a saucy eyebrow, "Then who?" The sly answering grin was the final nail in the coffin of her brilliant year.

"It's me. I'm head boy."

-------------

It was going to be a bloody brilliant year. James had felt bad all week that Remus wouldn't be head boy. Remus was the obvious choice. He had been the prefect, after all. Unfortunately, there was the secret of Remus's condition that made him a less than perfect choice since he would be out of commission at LEAST one day a month, possibly more. He, James Potter; head boy. Working in close quarters with Lily Evans. Maybe he'd even get a chance to show her he wasn't just a big dumb quidditch hero.

He looked down at her fluttering eyelashes and pinkening cheeks. If he didn't know Evans better, he might think this news would be enough to faint. Not likely. She was probably formulating a whopper of a curse to throw at him. She did that sometimes. If it made her feel better, then so be it. He'd never been truly harmed by her, and there was no way he'd actually fight her back--his curses and hexes could be… a little too powerful sometimes, they came easily to him and sometimes he misjudged the amount of necessary force.

When it happened to a boy it was all in good fun--or not in some cases, but it would NOT be alright for him to accidentally do damage to Evans. Fiery little Evans, who by some chance of fate was the only girl at Hogwarts he had more than a passing interest in. Who, by that very same chance, was the one of the only girls at Hogwarts not clamoring for his notice.

She was definitely formulating an argument; he could see it in her eyes and the stubborn tilt of her head. When he'd entered the heads' compartment, he'd known things were going to be awkward. In her mind he was the least likely man for the job, and a few years ago he would have agreed with her. Interesting how in only a few months things could change.

"Potter? How could YOU be head boy? It's just—it's not—you can't be!" Lily fairly shrieked at him. Ok, now was the time to be charming, apologetic, not defensive.

"Why not me? What's wrong with me?" He demanded. Good job there, James. Not defensive at all, no. "I mean," He tried again marshalling his thoughts, "even were the head boy not in Gryffindor, there were only a few choices, Remus, me, Warren Lygelliac, and Orin Catron, not to mention Sirius and Peter—"

"You've forgotten Severus. He would have been by far a better choice than you!" Lily looked smug. Perhaps she was trying to bait him with the use of he whom he would have, in the past, called Snivellus. Well, in the past it would have worked, except things had changed and he no longer felt the animosity he once had toward Snape. No, that battle was now one-sided. All Snape, no James.

He nodded. "You're right, I forgot about him. Obviously, there were a very few candidates and Remus was probably the best, I agree. Remus—" How to put it in a way that wouldn't compromise one of his best friends, "he has a few shortcomings which he couldn't overlook, and he and Professor Dumbledore agreed that it would have to be me, since Peter lacks the leadership ability and Sirius..." James couldn't help but grin at the look of fury that eked onto Lily's face, "Well, Sirius can't be trusted to look after a hamster, much less young children."

There was more to Sirius's issues than Lily needed to know, but James, while he'd come to certain assessments of his best friend in the last few months, wasn't about to confide his actual worries about Sirius to Lily who would quite possibly never understand.

Lily was not appeased, but she didn't look ready to explode either. She eyed him up and down. "Well, if that's the way of it. You'd do best to stay out of my way. I can probably handle most things myself, and I certainly can't depend upon you to do anything, can I?"

"What in the hell was that supposed to mean?" Oops, he'd meant to keep that in, not shout it at her. Six years of abuse were about enough, and James had been secretly hoping that working with her would form a little common ground. Really, seriously he'd become a bit less of a git in the last year, and he'd thank her to notice it, not just write him off as some over-grown six year old.

"I mean that you'll have quidditch still, won't you Mr. Captain?" She at least had the good grace to not look him in the eye as she spoke. "And then if not you, who will head your stupid little marauders' club?"

James wondered if that was a rhetorical question, but decided not to treat it as such. "I shouldn't think Sirius will have much trouble taking the lead in the instances where I am unavailable…" He didn't say that there was no way he'd leave Sirius to his own devices ever again, as James had just recently noted that Sirius had a rather heretofore unnoted mean-streak that was troubling when coupled with his natural recklessness.

Suddenly, James was tired. Obviously Lily thought he was useless, and he admitted that he rather felt the same. This really should have been Remus's job, and he was tired of Lily thinking poorly of him. It seemed no matter what he had thought about redeeming himself to her, she was determined not to be swayed by anything like getting to know him. In fact, she seemed appalled at the mere idea.

And so, in the face of her mutinous opposition, James sighed and gave up. "Fine, Evans. You can do it on your own; I won't get in the way. Just make a list of when you need to me appear, and I'll leave you to it." He turned to go find his mates.

"You can't just leave Potter, you're head boy! You have to help me with the prefects—and you're not even changed! Shirking already…" She was using the know-it-all voice, and it was maddening.

"Alright Evans, I've changed my mind. Obviously you don't agree with my presence, but Remus gave me a job to do, and no matter what you might think of me, believe that I keep my promises. I'll keep out of your way; you keep out of mine." Nothing said that head boy and head girl had to be friends so he supposed they could work with quiet mutual disdain too.

Lily huffed and turned to the door in a flurry of motion. "I'll expect you in the prefect's cab momentarily," she turned and graced him with a dubious look. "Just let me do the talking, yeah?" As she stormed from the room James could hear her muttering to herself about Dumbledore's "idiotic" choice. He even found himself smiling when he heard her murmur "I mean I know the man's eccentric, but really…"

So the year was looking less brilliant. Dashed upon the rocks of past expectations, James guessed. Well, he'd made his bed with Evans, he supposed now he'd have to lie in it. And Evans, well, she could just sod off if she thought that he was going to be her little puppet for the next year. No, he would be the best head boy ever. Better than anyone in the history of Hogwarts… Well, better than anyone expected him to be, at least. Maybe it would just be better to tell himself that Dumbledore must have had his reasons, and all that. Yeah, brilliant, indeed.


End file.
